Two new plaintiffs were added last week to an amended federal civil lawsuit against Texas Christian University that claims the university racially discriminates against Black women.
This news comes as TCU alumni have admonished the school for its lack of effort to curb racism on campus and faculty have started questioning why TCU didn't accept any CARES Act funding while retirement funds were slashed.
The amended lawsuit, which was originally filed in January, first had only one plaintiff, Jane Doe No. 1. Two more women, Jane Doe No. 2 and Jane Doe No. 3, were added to the lawsuit at the end of the spring 2020 semester. Jane Doe No. 4 and Jane Doe No. 5 were both added June 10.
The university filed motions to dismiss the lawsuit in May.
"As a practice, TCU does not comment on pending litigation," a spokesperson told WFAA. "TCU is focused on creating a respectful and inclusive community for all students."
Both women added to the lawsuit are Black. One woman, Jane Doe No. 4, is a former doctoral student in the university's Department of English, while the other, Jane Doe No. 5, is a current doctoral student in the same program.
According to the lawsuit, both women said that TCU's Title IX office ignored or downplayed their complaints about continued racial discrimination. Both women said that they experienced racist comments, jokes, rhetoric and course readings as a part of their time at the university, according to the lawsuit.
While both woman said they experienced separate instances of racism, the lawsuit highlights one instance where they co-founded a Reading Group for American and African American literature. The reading groups are required for the English Department.
Both Jane Doe No. 4 and No. 5 said they were given less money to provide food for their group than other reading groups — they say they were given $75 for a whole school year — and said they were told to include their complaints in a course evaluation form instead of reporting to the school's Title IX office.
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Both women also claim in the lawsuit that they were offered jobs at the university that would require them to stop bringing complaints through the Title IX office.
Jane Doe No. 4 was interviewing for a job in the school's Title IX office when she was told if she accepted the job offer, she would have to "forfeit all of her prior Title IX complaints of discrimination at TCU," according to the lawsuit.
She "was in disbelief" and declined the job offer, the lawsuit said. She left the program on Jan. 16, 2019, after experiencing "psychological and physiological pain and injuries as a result" of "the unyielding racist conduct of TCU and its agents," the lawsuit says.
Jane Doe No. 5 said in the lawsuit that Chancellor Victor Boschini offered her a job as a way to "waive her complaints."
The lawsuit says the student met with the chancellor on Nov. 1, 2019, to discuss her complaints.
"If there were a job at TCU for you, would you take it?" Boschini asked, according to the suit.
Both women declined the jobs they were offered, which they believe were attempts to silence them, the lawsuit says.
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